Box Score

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — No. 3 Fort Lewis College's quest for an unprecedented fourth straight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference women's basketball championship fell just short of coming to fruition as Mesa State (17-9 overall, 14-8 in the RMAC) upset the Skyhawks (25-2, 20-2) 57-51 tonight at Brownson Arena.

That, coupled with No. 11 Metro State's 59-37 win at Regis tonight, gives the Roadrunners sole possession of the RMAC crown.

“Obviously, it's a tough loss,” said sixth-year Skyhawk head coach Mark Kellogg, whose troops have posted an astounding 74-5 record (.937) in league games the past four seasons. “I'm so disappointed for us because we just worked so hard and had a heck of a year. You just hate to end [the regular season] this way.”

Fort Lewis needs to look no further than poor shooting and a dismal first half for tonight's loss. Usually one of the best-shooting teams in the country, the Skyhawks shot just 33.9 percent from the field, 18.2 percent from behind the arc and 47.4 percent from the foul line. The first frame saw the Skyhawks fall behind by as many as 11 points and trail 24-15 at the half.

“We scored 15 in the first half, which is atrocious,” said Kellogg. “We battled in the second half, had it to one, but just could never get the lead. We didn't get it done offensively, and that was probably the difference in the game.”

Still Kellogg was quick to praise the Mavericks, a team he knew would be tough to beat in their barn. “Mesa outplayed us tonight in every facet,” he said.

Balanced scoring, timely three-point shooting and efficiency from the foul line all helped the Mavs' cause tonight. Sharaya Selsor led the way with 14 points, while Kelsey Sigl (11), Katrina Selsor (10) and Tara Gehring (10) also scored in double figures. Mesa State shot 40 percent from three-point range (six of 15), with many of those treys coming after momentum appeared to shift in FLC's favor. Mesa State's 81.3 percent (13 of 16) from the foul line came as no surprise, as the Mavs are the RMAC's top free throw shooting squad.

Dana Schreibvogel led the Skyhawks with 17 points while Jenna Santistevan added 11. Santistevan — the RMAC's Defensive Player of the Week the past two weeks — was a force on the defensive end with seven rebounds (four defensive), three steals and two blocked shots.

“This one hurts, but we still have plenty of goals out in front of us to accomplish,” said Kellogg. “We're still in a good spot. We get the chance to accomplish all of those. One good thing is we get to play quickly on Tuesday, so we'll get it out of our system real quick.”

Fort Lewis will be seeded No. 2 in next week's RMAC Shootout and will host Nebraska-Kearney (13-13, 12-10) at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in Whalen Gymnasium, where the Skyhawks own a 45-game home winning streak.

“We do need to regroup,” Kellogg said. “We've got to refocus and get our confidence back.

“I feel for our kids,” he added. “They've given us their everything this year.”